Folding chair



. ,lune 2, 1925.

R. .1. iNNls FOLDING CHAIR Filed Sept. 25. 1922 Patented June 2, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

'ROBERT J. INNIS, 0F IONIA, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR- T O E. H. STAFFORD MFG. CO., OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

FOLDING CHAIR.

Application filed September 25, 1922. Serial No. 590,380.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT J. lINNIS, a citizen of the United States, and resident ot' Ionia, county of Iona, and State of Michigan, have invented certain vnew and useful Improvements in Folding Chairs, of which the following is a specification, and which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

The invention relates to folding chairs vand more particularly to that type of folding chair which has pivotally connected rigid front and rear leg frames and a seat connecting the frames to form an A frame when the chair is unfolded and which, when folded, lies substantially within the space enclosed by the front leg frame. The invention contemplates a chair comprising rigid front and rear leg frames and a back, all having a common pivotal mounting at their upper ends and a seat' pivotally supported upon the frontleg frame and having a slidingconnection with the rear leg frame and a hinged connection with the back. Such chairs are frequently constructed with a multiplicity of pivotal, sliding and hinged connections between the various parts, each of which adds resist-ance to the operation of folding and unfolding and to the expense of construction. The o ject of the invention is to provide a folding chair of the type above mentioned wherein the number of connections between the'various parts of the chair is reduced to a minimum and which is of economical, strong and durable construction.

In the accompanying drawings- Fig. 1 is a front view of the chair when unfolded;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section view taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a front view of the chair when folded;

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view on the line 4 4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a detail on a larger scale, and

Fig. 6 is a detail section on the line 6-6 of Fig. a

There is shown in the drawings a front leg frame l() comprislng a pair of side bars 11 rigidly connected by a cross bar 12 and rungs 13, the bars 11 serving as the front legs of the chair. A back 14 and rear leg frame 15 are pivotally mounted at their upper ends on a rod 16 extending transversely through bars 11, the rod `thereby1 forming a common pivotal mounting for the rear frame, back and front frame 10.

Frame 15 comprises two side bars 17 which are rigidly connected at their lower ends by a rung 14al and fixed against lateral movement of their upper ends by being mounted on rod 16 between side bars 11 and back 14. The side bars 17 form the rear legs of the chair and. are provided .with longitudinal slots 18 along their inner faces from substantially their middle to their lower end portions.

A seat 19 is pivotally mounted on a rod 20 which connects the side bars 11, and is hingedly connected at 25 to the lower end of the back 14 by links 21. Each link 21 is pivoted to the back 14 at its upper end as at 14a and its lower end is bent forwardly to engage the pivot 25 in the slot 25a in the seat 19. It will be observed that the pivot 25 is supported-lat each end thereof, thereby insuring a reliable joint at this point. The seat 19 is slidingly connected with the rear frame 15, being provided with rearwardly extending arms 22 which have plates 23 bolted on their ends and pintles 24 mounted on the plates and extending into slots 18. When the chair is unfolded the frames 10 and 15 form the supporting legs and arms 22, the tie of an A frame structure supporting the load with seat 19 projecting substantially its length in front. In this position pintles 24 bear against the upper ends pf lot 18 to prevent tilting of its seat by its In its folded position the pintles 24 are at the lower lend of slot 18. The rod 16, on which the back 14 and rear frame 15 are mounted, is positioned near the rear edge of the frame 10 to permit the frame 15 and the back to lie within the frame 10; and adjacent its rear edge when folded. The rod 20, on which seat 19 is mounted, is positioned near the front edge of the frame 10, thereby permitting the seat to lie within the frame parallel to and overlapping the back 14 and rear frame 15 when the chair is folded.

The pin 25 is set slightly back of the rod 20 to thereby cause the back 14 to swing relatively to the rear frame 15 as the chair is folded and unfolded. By this arrange; ment the back is moved to the proper posinon by the link 21 during the unfiding of.

the chair and is moved into the plane of the side bars 11 when the chair is folded. The curvature of t-he links 21 permits the seat 19 and its back to fold into parallel position. It will be observed that when the chair is in folded position the rear leg frame 15, the back 14 and the seat 19 are all arranged in the plane of the side bars l1, whereby the chair may occupy a minimum amount of space and may be easily and readily packed or stacked uponother chairs for storage or for shipment.

I claim as my invention:

l. In a folding chair, in combination, rigid front and rear leg frames and a back, the said three parts having a common pivotal connection at their upper ends, a seat pivotally supported upon the front leg frame and having a sliding connection with the rear leg frame and hinged connection with the back whereby the initial folding of the seat Will cause said leg frames to be drawn toward each other.

2. In a folding chair, in combination, rigid front and rear leg frames and a back, the said three parts havlng a common pivotal connection at their upper ends, the leg members ofsaid rear frame having longitudinal slots formed therein, a seat pivotally mounted on the front leg frame and having rearwardly extending arms, pintlcs on the arms slidably engaging said slots and links connecting 'the rear of said seat with the lower end of said back whereby said front and rear leg frames are drawn toward each other during the entire folding movement of said seat portion.

3. A folding'chair comprising, in combination, front and rear leg frames and a back, such three elements having a common pivotal connection adjacent their upper ends, a seat pivoted tothe front frame and having sliding pivotal engagement with the rear frame necting said seat to the lower portion of saidv back.

4. A folding chair comprising, in combination, a front supporting member, a rear supporting member, a back member, means for connecting said members together at their upper ends whereby the same may swing about a common pivotal axis, a seat portion and means for connecting said seat portion to said members whereby said front and rear supporting members are drawn toward each other during the entire folding movement of said seat portion.

5. A folding chair comprising front leg members, rear leg members pivoted thereto, a back portion, means for pivotally connecting the upper end of said back portion to one set of said members, a seat portion pivotally connected to said front leg member and having a sliding connection with the rear leg members, links pivotally connected to the lower end of said back portion and extending downwardly and forwardly therefrom,

and means for pivotallyl connecting said.

links to said sea-t portion.

(l. In a folding chain-front leg members, rear leg members, a back, a tie rod for pivotally connecting said members and said back together, and for tying said front leg members together, a seat portion, a second tie rod for pivotally connecting said seat portion to said front legs and for tying said front leg members together whereby said tie members and the sections of the legs between said tie members form a rigid rectangle for bracing said chair, means for movably connecting said seat portion to said rear legs and means for movably connecting said back to said seat portion.

ROBERT J. INNIS. 

